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As reported last week, Microsoft will launch an 'Anniversary Update' for Windows 10 that will bring Ubuntu file system, allowing you to use Bash to run command-line Linux applications without a virtual machine.

However, you do not have to wait until this summer to run Bash (Bourne Again Shell) on your Windows 10 OS, as Microsoft has released the first preview build of the Windows 10 Anniversary Update to the members of its Insider program.

Don't expect it to run Ubuntu directly on Windows 10, as this is basically Ubuntu user-space packages running natively on Windows 10 by the company coming up with real-time translation of Linux system calls into Windows system calls.

Here's How to Run native Bash on Ubuntu on Windows

Step 3: Now turn ON "Developer Mode" via Settings → Update & security → For developers, as this new feature is specifically meant for developers.

Step 4: You now need to check for new updates (Insider Preview Build 14316), apply all updates, and then Restart your system.

Step 5: Turn ON the new Windows feature, "Windows Subsystem for Linux (Beta)".

Note: You need a 64-bit version of Windows. Without it, you won't see the new option.

Step 6: Reboot your system.

Step 7: Now Press the Start button and type 'Bash' or simply open Command Prompt and type 'bash.' This will launch a console window powered by Ubuntu's user-space.

Bingo! Now experience Bash just as good as it's in variants of Linux.

Other New Features in Build 14316

Other new features in Build 14316 include improvements to the Microsoft Edge browser, new Skype Universal Windows Platform app, support for new emoji, and a new toggle that lets you switch between light and dark mode themes for Windows Settings, clock, calculator, and other apps.

However, Keep in mind that this is just a preview of upcoming Windows feature, so there may be some bugs, and some features may also change before they are launched for all Windows users this summer.

'Microsoft loves Linux' so much that now the company is bringing the popular Bash shell, alongside the entire Linux command environment, to its newest Windows 10 OS in the upcoming 'Anniversary Update,' Redstone.

The rumours before the Microsoft’s Build 2016 developer conference were true. Microsoft has just confirmed that it is going to enable its users to run Bash (Bourne Again Shell) natively on Windows 10.

Microsoft has partnered with Ubuntu's parent company Canonical to ensure the Bash experience for users is just as good in Windows OS as it's in variants of Linux.

Although the Goal of the partnership, in the end, is to bring Ubuntu on Windows 10, don't expect it to run Ubuntu directly on Windows 10.

Users will be able to download Bash from the Windows Store. BASH or Bourne Again Shell is capable of handling advanced command line functionalities that are not a cup of tea for Powershell or CMDs.

"The Bash shell is coming to Windows. Yes, the real Bash is coming to Windows," said Microsoft's Kevin Gallo at Build 2016 keynote. "This is not a VM [Virtual Machine]. This is not cross-compiled tools. This is native."

There already exists third-party apps to implement Bash shell running on Windows, such as Cygwin or MSYS. But the new move by Microsoft would eliminate the usage of 3rd party utilities, offering, even more, flexibility for developers who prefer using these binaries and tools.

How to Run Bash on Windows?

Users just have to follow these simple steps to run Bash on Windows 10 OS:

Open the Windows Start menu

Type "bash"

Hit 'Enter'

This will open a command line console (cmd.exe) running Ubuntu's /bin/bash, Dustin Kirkland, Canonical's Ubuntu Product and Strategy team member, explains in a blog post.

This is not Microsoft Linux for Windows

Don’t get confused, as Microsoft is not enabling all Linux applications to run on top of Windows nor this is "Microsoft Linux." The company is just providing support for Bash on Windows 10 as an expansion of its command-line tool family.

So, the company is working on integrating Ubuntu User Space in Windows 10, as a hacker has already spotted a Linux subsystem in preview build (build 14251) of the Windows 10 code in late January.

As Kirkland writes:

"So just Ubuntu running in a virtual machine?" Nope! This isn't a virtual machine at all. There's no Linux kernel booting in a VM under a hypervisor. It's just the Ubuntu user space. "Ah, okay, so this is Ubuntu in a container then?" Nope! This isn't a container either.

This isn't Microsoft's first step towards implementing Linux functionality in Windows. Just last year, Microsoft had worked on the Linux Kernel and made a Linux OS called Azure Cloud Switch. It also chose Ubuntu as the operating system for its Cloud-based Big Data services.